Emotional Dissonance Mediating Between Secondary Traumatic Stress and Burnout: Probing Postgraduate Mental Healthcare Trainees

Abstract

This research endeavor intended to probe the mediating role of emotional dissonance between secondary traumatic stress and burnout in postgraduate mental health trainees. Following APA-mandated ethical guidelines; a purposive sample of 248 mental health trainees was recruited from various universities and mental health facilities in Lahore. The results established a significant positive association between secondary traumatic stress and burnout while a negative correlation between emotional dissonance and burnout. Furthermore, while secondary traumatic stress positively predicted burnout, however emotional dissonance negatively predicted burnout among mental health trainees. Lastly, findings also suggested that emotional dissonance partially mediates between secondary traumatic stress and burnout. Other than making a valuable addition to the existing research scholarship by bringing in the mediating role of emotional dissonance, these findings also have significant implications for clinical, counseling, and other public health-related settings as they highlight the psychological toll that mental health trainees go through while rending professional services in the field. Academicians and policymakers can also be engaged to develop mechanisms so that novice trainees and students can be provided with tools to effectively deal with workplace challenges.